Ireland’s leading CEOs convene to discuss the power of data at PwC and Business to Arts CEO Forum

26 September, 2018

PwC are once again hosting the annual Business to Arts CEO Forum. The 2018 CEO Forum, which will include over 100 leaders from irish business and the arts, will focus on how data and data insights are informing business decisions and helping business growth. In light of the recent implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), attendees will also discuss its impact so far. The forum’s panellists include:

Vincent Harrison, Managing Director, Dublin Airport

Dr. Sandra Collins, Director of The National Library of Ireland

Michael Duffy, CEO, Royal Dublin Society

Leonard McAuliffe, Director, PwC

As part of preparation for the CEO Forum, a two-phase PwC and Business to Arts survey was carried out among arts and cultural organisations affiliated with Business to Arts. The survey aimed to identify GDPR readiness as well as the opportunities and challenges it presented. Phase one of the survey was carried out in April 2018 prior to the GDPR effective date in May, while phase two was carried out among the same participants in September 2018, four months after the implementation deadline.

Survey results

In April 2018, 68% of respondents said they had started the process to become GDPR compliant. In September 2018, 100% of respondents reported that they are continuing to take steps to ensure their GDPR compliance.

In April 2018, respondents expected that GDPR compliance would create challenges in relation to their marketing and fundraising performance. Namely:

89% expected increased administration

63% expected additional governance and compliance requirements

58% expected increased human resource time

30% expected increased risk and financial cost.

In September 2018, respondents identified that the most difficult aspects of becoming GDPR compliant were understanding what was required, allocation of appropriate time, and ensuring appropriate levels of staffing.

In September 2018, 57% of respondents reported that they have seen benefits of GDPR implementation. Benefits include enhanced targeting of audiences, increased open rates of email communications and increased transparency.

Speaking about the survey findings, Leonard McAuliffe, Director, PwC Cyber practice, said:“Business and arts organisations collate personal data for events, sponsorship and other reasons. Every organisation, regardless of size, must ensure that this data is protected and properly held in accordance with regulations. In our experience, businesses and arts organisations have employed significant resources, time and expense, to be GDPR compliant, and this work is ongoing. It is important that the benefits of GDPR, including improved transparency over safe data storage, better engagement with stakeholders and enhanced public trust, are realised by all organisations, including those in the arts and cultural sector.”

Chief Executive of Business to Arts, Andrew Hetherington commented, “With organisations more focused on enhancing audience insight and data usage, the corporate and cultural sectors have much to learn from each other about ways they can interact with and understand their audience or consumer. Importantly, in this new era of data regulation, our CEO Forum is focusing on the decisions that are informed or made using data analysis and insights as well as those that are informed by our experience.”

ENDS

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